/r/blind community migrates to Lemmy.
Reddit Migration@kbin.social – 308 points – 
I checked the /r/blind sub and they have started their own Lemmy instance. Edited so Blind users can read it.
Announcement!!Open Alpha!! RBlind - A community on Lemmy, brought to you by the moderators of the /r/blind subreddit.
Since the news broke regarding the forthcoming changes to reddit’s API and the impact that will have on the third party apps and tools many of us rely upon the mods here at r/blind have been working on an accessible option for those who either cannot or will not be staying on reddit. As talk of alternatives like mastodon, lemmy, and the like have increased we decided that it would be best to reveal what we have been working on, hence this post. Several days ago we shared this with those of you on our Discord server and have been asking for feedback.
This project is by no means finished or polished, and is currently operating on development backend code and a beta UI to allow for access to still unreleased features that our community needs such as up/down votes displaying state changes, and nested comments, read this as there are and will be bugs and outstanding accestsibility problems. However, the advantage of this platform is we control the servers, the UI, and can fix accessibility concerns ourselves instead of relying on a for profit company or the generosity of app developers to do it for us, not that the latter is unappreciated.
So please be understanding of the above and we hope those of you who decide to join and see what we have done so far for all of us, and please report problems as you find them.
-- u/spez, probably
I could unironically see this being a real reason why they don't care much about the blind community
I'm surprised he hadn't said the quiet part out loud yet in another AMA.
Fuck spez!! 🖕🖕
I am not American but doesn't this technically violate the ADA? Also that sounds in character for spez.
Also not adhesiveness, soooo no idea. Are they're actually laws over there that enforce accessibility for websites? I'd be surprised if there was...
EDIT: American, not adhesiveness. WTF is with AI predictive text and autocorrect being so trash?
Their post about the meetings with reddit:
Moderators of r/blind—along with moderators in other communities who use assistive technologies and Reddit users with accessibility expertise—had a Zoom meeting with representatives at Reddit on Friday, June 16, 2023. While the call was promising in that Reddit invited us to be part of continuing dialog and demonstrated some well-conceived accessible designs for Reddit users, we came away with serious concerns which Reddit was either unable or unwilling to address during the meeting.
Reddit is currently prioritizing accessibility for users rather than for moderators, and representatives were unwilling to provide timelines by when Reddit’s moderation tools would be accessible for screen reader users. Further, Reddit representatives seemed unaware that blind moderators rely on third-party applications because Reddit’s moderation tools present significant accessibility challenges. They also seemed unaware that the apps which have so far received exemptions from API pricing do not have sufficient moderation functions. u/NTCarver0 explained that blind moderators will be unable to ensure safety for our communities—as well as for Reddit in general—without accessible moderation systems, and asked Reddit representatives how blind moderators were supposed to effectively moderate our communities without them. Reddit representatives deferred the question, stating they would have to take notes and get back with us. A fellow moderator, u/MostlyBlindGamer, also pointed out that blind moderators who are unable to effectively moderate the subreddit and thus will become inactive may be removed at Reddit’s discretion per policy, and that such removal would leave r/Blind with no blind moderators. Reddit representatives also deferred comment on this issue.
Reddit representatives refused to answer questions concerning the formal certifications, accreditations or qualifications of employees tasked with ensuring universal accessibility. These certifications demonstrate that a professional has the knowledge necessary to create universally-accessible software and/or documents. Because Reddit cannot confirm that employees tasked with universal accessibility hold appropriate certifications or that the company will provide for such training and certification, we have concerns that employees do not have the appropriate knowledge to effectively ensure access for all assistive technology users both at present and in the future. Reddit has also indicated there are not currently any employees who work full-time on accessibility. This is a necessity for any organization as large and influential as Reddit.
Reddit representatives had previously disclosed to r/Blind moderators that an accessibility audit had been performed by a third-party company, however they refused to answer questions as to what company performed the audit or how the audit was conducted. Answers to these questions would have allowed us to determine whether the audit was performed by an accredited organization known for credible and thorough work. Reddit also could not answer questions as to what assistive technologies, such as screen readers, screen magnifiers, dictation softwares, etc., were used during the audit. Bluntly, we cannot know the thoroughness or scope of the audit—and therefore the extent to which Reddit is aware of the accessibility barriers present in their website and apps—without this information.
During the previous meeting, Reddit representatives raised a question regarding perceived disparities between the accessibility of the iOS and Android apps, suggesting the audit did not confirm that the accessibility failings in the iOS app are much more severe than those present in the Android app. During the latest meeting, u/MostlyBlindGamer explained that the iOS app has no labels for the ubiquitous and essential upvote and downvote buttons while the Android app does. This question raises the concern that Reddit representatives may not have a full and actionable understanding of the issues at stake or, in fact, the exact accessibility failings in their apps.
Reddit representatives narrowly defined the scope of the latest meeting less than an hour ahead of it, explicitly excluding third-party apps and API pricing from the conversation. They did acknowledge that this made it difficult to adequately prepare for the meeting.
Reddit refused to define the term “accessibility-focused app,” alleging that this was outside the cope of the meeting. This term is not industry-standard and was instead created when Reddit carved out an exemption in their upcoming API policies for third-party apps used by blind people to access the platform. Without this definition, we are unable to ascertain whether apps that have not been approved but are nevertheless relied upon by community members qualify for an exemption.
Reddit gave no firm commitments as to when accessibility improvements would be rolled out to the website or apps. However, it is obvious that the Reddit website and apps will not be ready for disabled users—and especially moderators—by July 1.
In general, moderators of r/Blind who attended the call came away with mixed impressions. Reddit seems to be somewhat aware of the myriad accessibility barriers present in their applications and website, and the company appears to be laying the groundwork to fix issues which they are aware of. This is excellent news. However, we also feel that Reddit does not know what it does not know, and this lack of knowledge is exasperating, disheartening, and exhausting. We also came away frustrated that Reddit representatives were either unwilling or unable to answer prudent and pertinent questions which would allow us to determine not only how we can best keep our community safe and healthy, but also whether Reddit is truly prepared to commit to ensuring accessibility for all disabled users both now and in the future. Finally, we hope that our concerns—especially those pertaining to moderation—will be addressed expeditiously and satisfactorily, thus assuring that r/Blind can operate effectively well into the future. Despite our concerns, we remain open to continued dialog with Reddit in the hope that it will foster a more accessible platform.
That's atrocious! I hope someone is sending this post to a few media outlets.
Edit: found this--
"If you are a current or former Reddit moderator or employee, I’m interested in hearing from you. Feel free to email me at jay.peters@theverge.com."
I hope that too, discriminating them like that is indeed atrocious, I bet newspapers would be very interested in this.
It's so very obviously clear that they really don't care, except that the fact that dismissing blind users brings bad press (and bad press that's broadly understandable unlike the current stories out there)
They'll make promises, and deliver a slightly late and underbaked little thing that kinda helps then basically forget about it.
Reddit has a history of empty promises when it comes to supporting moderators and mod tools. r/AskHistorians covered it (mirror) before the blackout protest.
Good on r/blind for taking power into their own hands.
Like, these aren't new problems - anyone who uses Reddit much knows these issues have existed and have been talked about forever
It's so gross to hear that Reddit admins "weren't fully aware" of these issues, they're either lying or revealing that they truly do not give a hoot,
I guess the "won't effect accessibility apps" was also a blatant lie...
I'm glad they're making changes.
spezzy and his jackbooted thugs are busy busy telling big fat porkies to users, issuing threats to mods, and secretly creating new content policy.
https://reddit.adminforge.de/r/ModCoord/comments/14exvjk/reddit\_is\_likely\_making\_major\_changes\_to\_their/
ETA : changed 'they' to 'spezzy and his jackbooted thugs' to avoid confusion.
I have started seeing adminforge links I am guessing that it is a webscraper that shows what is posted to reddit?
adminforge hosts libreddit, a private front-end to reddit.
I didn't see that coming.
Pun intended?
Uplifting News
will redditinc realize their precious spezzy is burning down reddit?
@xuxebiko this is a decision of the entire board of directors
@Gamers_Mate
they're a stupid lot then. threatening mods & angering users will simply ensure their IPO burns to ashes.
I guess that checks out if they are incompetent enough to lose money while all of their moderators are doing all the work for free then they are probably not the brightest.
You love to hear it. The beauty of open source is that you can extend it to fit your own needs. For those with disabilities, it is a means of direct empowerment -- a critical tool for overcoming obstacles without needing to beg others for help.
I look forward to hearing about the inevitable platform improvements this will bring, but I'm even more glad that the /r/blind community is able to walk away with dignity. Reddit's handling of the accessibility situation has long since crossed the line from disrespectful to insulting.
I imagine the relatively simple web design of these federated Reddit alternatives would be a blessing for reading apps commonly used by the blind.
Being opensource also means that the blind community, that knows better than anyone else what they need, can also freely contribute to the project, being reporting bugs, requesting features, and if they have developers they can fix things themselves and submit their fixes to the code for everyone to use.
Being federated and open source also means that anybody can build the interface they need, and that nobody can take it away.
Way to go!
Good for them. Get after it.
How embarrassing that lemmy devs who have less than 1% the budget of reddit were ready willing and able to provide the kind of support that the r/blind mods felt comfortable just walking away from reddit and running there own lemmy instance
Makes sense to me.